NEWS RELEASE
Weekend Roundup: July 25-26
Date:Tuesday, July 28, 2026
Eight Puppies and Their Mother Left in a 97-Degree Garage and a Wanted Man on a Golf Cart Top Weekend Arrests
BUNNELL, Fla. — Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies made 18 arrests this past weekend between 6 p.m. on Friday, July 24, 2026, and 6 a.m. on Monday, July 27, 2026. Deputies handled 787 calls for service and made 124 traffic stops.
‘See Something Say Something’ Leads to Arrest After Eight Puppies and Their Nursing Mother Were Left Caged in a 97-Degree Garage
On Saturday, deputies arrested a Palatka woman who left a nursing dog and her eight puppies caged in a garage in 97-degree heat, then refused repeated orders to give them water.
Just before 1:30 p.m., a deputy responded to a home on Rolland Lane in Palm Coast to check on animals left in a garage. A DoorDash driver had called after spotting a two-level cage inside the garage with the door halfway open — an adult American Bully in the bottom half, a litter of puppies in the top. The driver saw no food or water for either dog, and every animal was panting in the heat.
Deputies observed eight puppies, about four and a half weeks old, laying on top of each other in the upper cage, sharing one bowl with a little water left in it. Their mother, a nursing two-year-old named Envy, panted heavily in the cage below, next to a bowl that was empty. Outside, it was 97 degrees.
Shafaira Johnson, 36, of Palatka, exited the home through the garage and told the deputy she had expected the DoorDash driver to call law enforcement. She refused to let the deputy into the garage and said she could not move the dogs inside because she was waiting on someone to return with her vehicle.
Shafaira Johnson (Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility Mugshot)
At 1:40 p.m., with Envy still panting heavily, the deputy told Johnson to give the dog water. She did not, saying Envy had been watered earlier and throws up when she drinks too much. It took a second order, nine minutes later, before she filled the bowl.
As Animal Control was on their way, Johnson began closing the garage door. She was directed to reopen it. Instead, she began loading the puppies into a cardboard box, and she read the deputy a text message claiming law enforcement could not enter the garage. Because of the exigent circumstances for the safety of the puppies and dog in the heat, the deputy ordered her multiple times to open the door. She refused each time and stood beside a pickup truck, putting herself between the deputy and the dogs.
Just before 2:45 p.m., a man arrived at the home and handed over a cardboard box holding eight panting puppies whose fur was warm to the touch. An Animal Control investigator took the puppies into an air-conditioned vehicle. Envy, lactating and still panting heavily, was handed over next.
“Eight puppies and their mother barked for help as they baked in a 97-degree garage,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “Thankfully a DoorDash driver ‘saw something and said something,’ and now all nine dogs are safe, cool, and being cared for. If you can’t take care of your animals, surrender them. Lately we have arrested far too many people who don’t care about their animals’ well-being. Don’t lock your pets in conditions you wouldn’t want to live in yourself.”
Deputies arrested Johnson for animal cruelty, confinement of animals without sufficient food or water, and resisting without violence. She was transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where she was later released on a $1,500 bond.
See video of Johnson’s Arrest.
DWLS Fugitive Attempts Workaround, Caught Driving Golf Cart Down Palm Coast Sidewalk
Also on Saturday, deputies arrested a Palm Coast man on an out-of-county warrant after he was stopped driving a golf cart down the sidewalk.
Shortly before 5:45 p.m., a deputy stopped a golf cart being driven on the sidewalk and through a crosswalk at Belle Terre Parkway and Zebulahs Trail. Florida law keeps motorized vehicles off sidewalks unless a city specifically allows golf carts, which Palm Coast has not.
The driver was identified as Malachai Kenyon-Gonzalez, 20, of Palm Coast. A check on his Florida driver’s license determined he had an active Volusia County warrant for driving while his license was suspended.
Malachai Kenyon-Gonzalez (Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility Mugshot)
“This guy is wanted in another county for driving on a suspended license, so his solution was to take a golf cart down the sidewalk instead,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “Palm Coast isn’t The Villages and Belle Terre Parkway isn’t the back nine. Golf-carting down the sidewalk isn’t a clever workaround, it’s the wrong course and out-of-bounds.”
Deputies arrested Kenyon-Gonzalez on the out-of-county warrant. He was transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where he was later released on a $500 bond.
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